Description
Advances in laser technology have made it possible to deliver energies of the order of a joule in tens of femtoseconds at relatively high repetition rates (e.g., 100 Hz). When focused onto a thin solid target, such lasers can generate multi-MeV proton beams with fluxes exceeding 10¹⁰ particles per shot. These sources are promising for producing the ¹⁸F radioisotope via the ¹⁸O(p,n)¹⁸F nuclear reaction. This development could significantly benefit the wider adoption of Positron Emission Tomography, which relies on the availability of short-lived positron-emitting radiopharmaceuticals. At present, these compounds are mainly produced at selected cyclotron facilities and then transported to hospitals, limiting the geographical availability of PET and making economically viable only the production in large batches. We investigate, through Monte Carlo simulations, the feasibility of employing laser-driven proton sources combined with microfluidic systems for on-demand production of ¹⁸F radiopharmaceuticals. The simulations were benchmarked against results obtained in a dedicated experiment carried out at low repetition rate. Proton beams obtained through TNSA were directed onto a [¹⁸O]H₂O sample contained within a custom PDMS microfluidic target chip intended for direct integration with the radiochemical apparatus used in radiopharmaceutical synthesis. During the experiment, a peak activity of ∼5 Bq was measured, while tens of MBq are expected for HRR operation and adopting an optimized irradiation scheme aimed at maximizing the proton flux reaching the enriched water sample.